Using tfy apply

preview and apply changes to your resources using tfy apply

What is tfy apply?

tfy apply is a CLI command that lets you create or update resources, such as deployments, workspaces, clusters, and provider accounts, by applying a manifest file.

A manifest is a YAML file that describes the resource you want to create or update.

Note: If you haven’t set up the CLI yet, see the CLI setup guide.

Example: Deploying an OpenAI Provider Account

Here’s a sample manifest for creating an OpenAI provider account.

name: openai-account-cli
type: provider-account/openai
collaborators:
  - subject: user:[e-mail]
    role_id: provider-account-manager
  - subject: team:everyone
    role_id: provider-account-access
auth_data:
  api_key: tfy-secret://truefoundry:openai-group:API_KEY
  type: api-key
integrations:
  - type: integration/model/openai
    name: gpt-4
    model_id: gpt-4
    model_types:
      - chat
    cost:
      value:
        input: 0.03
        output: 0.06
      metric: per_1000_tokens
  - type: integration/model/openai
    name: gpt-4o
    model_id: gpt-4o
    model_types:
      - chat
    cost:
      value:
        input: 0.0025
        output: 0.01
      metric: per_1000_tokens

What is Dry Run?

The --dry-run flag simulates the apply process without making any changes. This is useful to validate your manifest and see what would happen if you actually applied it.

What is Show Diff?

The --show-diff flag, when used with --dry-run, displays the differences between your manifest and the currently deployed resources. This helps you review what changes will be made before applying them.

Previewing Changes Before Applying

To see what changes will be made without actually applying them, you can use the following command:

tfy apply -f <your-manifest-file>.yaml --dry-run --show-diff

This will show you a diff of what will change, without updating anything.

Applying the changes

To apply the changes in your manifest, run:

tfy apply -f <your-manifest-file>.yaml

This will actually create or update the resource as described in your YAML file.

Directory Mode

Instead of specifying individual manifest files with -f, you can apply all manifests from a directory using the -d (or --dir / --directory) flag.

tfy apply --dir ./manifests

The -f and --dir flags are mutually exclusive. You must use exactly one of them.

How Directory Mode Works

• All *.yaml and *.yml files under the specified directory are discovered recursively
• Files are automatically sorted by manifest type to respect dependencies (e.g., team is applied before workspace is applied)

Previewing Directory Changes

You can combine directory mode with dry run to preview all changes:

tfy apply --dir ./manifests --dry-run --show-diff

Git-Based Diff Mode

When working with manifests stored in a git repository, you can use --diffs-only to apply only the files that have changed compared to a specific git reference.

tfy apply --dir ./manifests --diffs-only

This compares your working directory against HEAD and only applies YAML files that git considers modified or newly added.

Specifying a Comparison Reference

Use --ref to compare against a specific commit, branch, or tag instead of HEAD:

tfy apply --dir ./manifests --diffs-only --ref main

tfy apply --dir ./manifests --diffs-only --ref v1.2.0

The --ref flag is only valid when used with --diffs-only.

What Gets Included

• Modified files: YAML files that have changes compared to the reference
• New files: Untracked YAML files under the directory are treated as new and included
• Deleted files: Tracked in a separate set (used with --sync)

Sync Mode

The --sync flag enables cleanup of resources whose manifest files have been deleted from git. After applying changed manifests, it will delete platform resources that correspond to removed YAML files.

tfy apply --dir ./manifests --diffs-only --sync

The --sync flag requires both --dir and --diffs-only to be set.

If a deleted file’s content cannot be parsed from the git history, that entry may be skipped during deletion.

Quick Reference

Flags	Effect
-f manifest.yaml	Apply a single manifest file
-f manifest1.yaml -f manifest2.yaml	Apply multiple manifest files
--dir ./manifests	Apply all YAML files under the directory, sorted by dependency order
--dir ./manifests --dry-run	Apply all YAML files under the directory, sorted by dependency order, but simulate without applying
--dir ./manifests --diffs-only	Apply only git-changed YAML files under the directory (vs HEAD)
--dir ./manifests --diffs-only --ref v	Apply only git-changed YAML files (vs ref v)
--dir ./manifests --diffs-only --sync	Apply changed files, then delete resources for YAML files removed in git